Los Angeles launch site to re-open

The following is a copy of the message I posted to our club Yahoogroup. Here is the website that will be updated in the near future:

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Hello,

The SCRA website will be updated by Martin as soon as possible with new Calendar of Events and Rocket Report. The Calendar of Events will contain launch dates for late 2005 and early 2006 as well as class dates for November 2005 and all of 2006 and Lucerne launch dates for 2006. We still plan to hold the extra launch date already added for Lucerne on Saturday October 29, 2005, we just did not add that to the new Calendar of Events since it will arrive before we print many of them. The Rocket Report still contains the 2005 iHobby show information and now includes the January 2006 AMA Convention info.

As we previously discussed, launches at the Santa Fe Dam will now only occur

6 months a year: Oct - Mar. They will usually be the first and third Saturday of those months, unless a conflict exists. THe new agreement spells out in writing exactly what we always understood: the Parks Department can cancel dates if needed with advanced notice (I beleive it said 7 days) and they can offer to reschedule. That's exactly what we are already doing with November, since there is a really large dog show on the first Saturday. We will therefore be launching the second and third Saturday in November.

We've discussed the reasons for the seasonal laucnhes and the early hours (mainly after the Lucerne launches when we have our lunch meetings, but also in e-mails among the many folks who were working on this effort). Here is a summary of those reasons:

  • They are very afraid of fire, so they don't want us there during hot summer months.
  • They plan to market/promote the park much more than in the past, so they expect the park to fill up on Sundays.
  • They want us to use the park during the most empty hours and that would be
7am to 10am. If we have a large scout/youth/school group and they register with us well in advance, we can request an extra hour or so. We will not push this unless the groups are very large. The best way to speed up check-in and launching is for them to be prepared before they show up to launch.
  • The Ren-Faire will most probably be back and wants even more weekends (and would love to take over the park through Memorial Day, but that will not go over well with the normal park patrons).

Once I get signed copies of the agreement documents, anyone who wants to see them can look them over at "brunch" after a launch. Another positive effect of the Ren Faire is the almost complete destruction of the weeds/brush in the eastern recovery area. We will try to set up closer to the eastern edge of our normal spot and point the launch rods to the southeast. There is a MUCH larger recovery area on that side and virtually no trees (and the small trees are farther away). Please use the lowest power motors possible in each model (or the second lowest if you can still recover it safely). Save the most powerful motors for Lucerne.

SANTA FE DAM LAUNCH TIMES: from 7:00am until 10:00am. Arrive early if you want to launch! DATES: SATURDAYS: 2005: October 15, November 12 & 19, December 3 & 17. 2006: January 7 & 21, February 4 & 18, March 4 & 18.

NOTE: Field will accommodate up to a single G motor. There are trees and a lake down wind from our launch and recovery area, so you should use the lowest power motors possible to recover your model rockets safely.

-Fred Shecter NAR 20117

Reply to
Fred Shecter
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Man, the amount of bureaucratic crap you guys have to put up with just to fly a few modrocs is staggering. You must have nerves of steel to be able to deal with it.

h
Reply to
raydunakin

Couldn't you just put the rocket on a launch rod, close your eyes, and imagine it being launched for a much safer ordeal? You could get a designated person to make the "whissh" noise of the mighty 1/4 A motor and have a friend gently put the rocket at your feet with chute deployed.

:) steve

Reply to
default

(I saw the smiley) I don't expect many 1/4A motors. Some rockets only fly 700 feet high on a G.

Other models like a Wizard will simply be lost if launched with a C6-7. Using an A6-4 is best, 1/2A6-2 is sub-optimum but OK and a B6-6 is OK if there is no wind and the fins are glued on straight (so the rocket does not kick off ina strnge direction and it does not drift away even with a streamer).

Lightweight parachute recovery models should also be powered appropriately to be recovered. Alpha with A8-3 or A6-4 is optimum. B6-4 might be OK if a flight with an A proves that wind drift is low that day.

Advantage to super early hours is virtually NO wind. Fog might linger, but it usually does not form within the dam the same as it does outside the dam.

Having an official signed agreement as an event co-sponsored by the Parks Department is a good thing. No additional fees beyond what anyone pays to drive into the park. NAR section insurance with special certificates RULES!

-Fred Shecter NAR 20117

Reply to
shreadvector

And it's more of a "pffftt" sound.

;)

Reply to
shreadvector

Fred, the more I read about your Plights, the more I don't under stand why you live there and put up with it ?

Yes, I understand you have a great job, but man this sounds like a whole bunch of well, stuff we aren't used to ;-)

Reply to
AlMax

If Fred wants to launch a real rocket, He can always take the drive out to Lucerne, right Fred?

Reply to
Dave Grayvis

That's why I'm glad I live up in Kern county and the High Mojave Desert. I can walk outside and flay anytime I want.

Reply to
Starlord

The locals don't mind being flayed? ;)

Reply to
raydunakin

I'm glad he and the rest of his club are willing to do it, because it makes it possible for a lot of kids to fly rockets, who wouldn't otherwise be able to. Adults can always drive out to the desert to do their rocketry if they want to, but most kids need a site closer to home. It's great that there are folks willing to put in so much effort on behalf of others.

"
Reply to
raydunakin

Not if I might get "flayed".

;)

Reply to
Fred Shecter

Reply to
lightnpyro

Thank you. I may be the person you hear from the most, but several other people aslo helped with this effort. they talked to folks at the Parks Dept and either talked to folks at the US Army Corps of Engineers or offered advice on past business with them. Many others seemed to have called the Park (and maybe other County officials) to complain - even though we asked people to exercise restraint. I'm guessing that enough scout groups called combined with our efforts to work through the system to present our activity as a positive recreation activity (and educational) is what did the trick.

First new launch was yesterday. No wind at the earlier hours (7am to 10am). This allowed more flights for models that would drift too far on breezy days or later in the day when the breeze kicks up. Lots of G motors were flown in big heavy models and lots of 1/2A through D. No E's and only one F - but it was perfect - an F21 in an Initiator. A TARC team even came out to fly their first model rocket ever as they learn the basics and proceed to design and build their competitive model(s).

If there is enough demand (i.e. crowds show up and we get lines of people waiting to launch) we will be able to ask for extended launch hours. That will come in useful as scout groups learn about the launch site return and start coming back.

Next weekend is the big iHobby show at the LA Convention Center. Anyone in SoCal can come to the show and meet the Aerotech and Quest folks and build a free Quest model rocket (2005 Starhawk).

Reply to
Fred Shecter

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